The Back-Up Friend
by KHLostEmpress
Summary: Zelda is tired of being known as "Link's girl". At least without any benefits to her. Midna is just there for moral support. Or to point and laugh. Whatever. Same difference. AU Prompt: "I'm just the backup friend." One-shot of the month: August 2017


"This is completely unnecessary."

"I disagree," Zelda shot back over her shoulder to her roommate and best friend, Midna. She couldn't stop. Not now. If she did, she might lose her nerve. "Not only do I think this is completely necessary, I believe it to be of vital importance." Though, she could not see her, she could almost feel the Twili roll her eyes at her. Midna often rolled her eyes at what she called Zelda's 'princess voice'. She had made it one of her life missions to get her to loosen up, to varying degrees of success. Zelda couldn't help it. Eighteen years of lessons being drilled into her wasn't easy to shake off.

Not to mention she tended to regress in high stress situations.

The footsteps behind her quickened until Midna was striding beside her. "Okay, Zelda," she said. "You know I support you, because, hello? I'm here, right now, aren't I? But can you explain to me, in detail this time, why you feel it is necessary to go scold Link now? At almost midnight?"

"I told you already."

Midna folded her arms across her chest and huffed. "Yes, you are tired of being known as 'Link's girl'." She used her fingers to create quotation marks as she said the words. "You've been called that since high school. What's the big deal?"

Zelda stopped moving. It took Midna a second to realize that she had. The Twili turned back and cocked an eyebrow at her. Zelda bit her bottom lip. "I was at Telma's today, finishing a paper for class," she said after the pause. "I looked up, and there was the boy looking at me. When our eyes made contact, he smiled at me, so I smiled back. After he got his order, he started walking towards me." She smiled at the memory. "I thought, 'Great! Cute boy is coming to talk to me. Maybe I can get his number or give him mine.'" Which didn't happen as often as she would like. Despite being in her final year of college, Zelda had never had a boyfriend. And it wasn't for lack of trying. But something always got in the way. "I closed my computer and put on my most charming smile…" She trailed off, frowning now as the memory played on in her mind.

As the silence continued, Midna clipped her tongue and placed her hand on her hip. "And?" Midna prompted.

"And he said, 'Hey, you're Zelda, right? Link's girl? I had something for him. I was wondering if you would give it to him for me? I lost track of time and don't have time today.'" She ignored Midna's snort of suppressed laughter. "I didn't know what else to do. So, I nodded and took the envelope from him, promising to deliver it today. But as I looked at him, I realized this was probably the hundredth time a complete stranger had called me Link's girl." Because it was always the same something that got in the way. Link. Somehow, she had gotten this label as "Link's girl" back in high school and it had followed her ever since.

Midna tilted her head to the side. "To be fair, Link does know like everybody." She lifted her finger into the air the emphasize her point.

Zelda ignored this comment. While true, it had no relevance on her current mission. At this point, it did not matter the whys and hows of Link somehow becoming friends to every random person he met. She started walking again. "And I came to the conclusion that this was the reason why I'm going to end up in a loveless marriage to one of my father's fat old business associates." She gave a firm nod. Because she had never had a boyfriend in her life. And she would like to get married at some point.

"Wait, what? That seems like a pretty big jump to me."

It wasn't that big of a jump to Zelda. She had two conflicting facts (no boyfriend, yet wanting marriage). And one giant problem. "Midna, I would have to move to the other side of the world to find someone who doesn't know Link," she explained. "And if I am only known as Link's girl, what other chance do I have?" This all made perfect sense to her. And if something didn't change, this was likely to be her future. Hence, why she was marching toward Link's apartment at midnight.

A tug on her arm stopped her. In the street lights, Zelda could make out the exasperated look on her friend's face. "You know, there is another solution. Since everyone thinks you're dating anyway, why don't you actually become Link's girl?" She shrugged and waved her hand as she made her next point. "It's what you want anyway."

While again, true, it was also an irrelevant point. Zelda clasped her hands in front of herself. "I have accepted that it will not happen. Link has nothing beyond platonic feelings for me." It had taken her years to conclude that and even longer to come to terms with it. After seven years of friendship (and many attempts to convey her feelings), Zelda concluded that if he hadn't fallen for her yet then he never would. "So, if I am to have any chance of happiness, things will have to change." Namely, she needed to stop this whole "Link's girl" business.

Midna clasped a hand on her shoulder in support. "Well then, let's go give the Hero a piece of your mind."

Within minutes, they reached the door to Link's apartment. Zelda reached out to ring the doorbell but pulled her fingers back into a curled fist as the brushed the button. Hesitation gripped her chest. Perhaps Midna had a point.

Midna cleared her throat. "What are you waiting for?" she asked, nudging her with her elbow.

"Well, as you said, it is late…" Zelda trailed off as Midna made a frustrated grunting noise behind her.

"For the love of Din," she muttered under her breath. She pushed Zelda's hand out of the way and pressed the doorbell. She turned her glare on Zelda. "You did not drag me halfway across town to chicken out. We are here now, and we are not leaving until this is sorted out."

Before Zelda could retort, the door opened to reveal Link. Her heart leapt into her throat. She could feel heat creep up the back of her neck. But it wasn't fair. Having been in love with Link for so long, she was well past the heart flutters and butterflies every time she saw him. But when he sprung himself on her like this, she regressed back to those high school reactions.

It was clear that they had woken him up from his disheveled clothes and hair. However, his expression gave no indication of it. His blue eyes were bright and clear. Zelda had always envied his ability to wake up at a moment's notice. "Umm…hi," he greeted. There was a low grumbly quality to his voice. Definitely, she had woken him up. His eyes went back and forth between the two girls. Zelda was too busy still fighting back her blush to form a reply. After an awkward pause, Link continued, "What are you doing here?"

Zelda stiffened when Midna nudged her in the ribs with her elbow. Though it hurt a bit, it did have the desired effect of jump-starting her brain. "Link," she blurted. She followed it with the first thing that came to mind. "Something of great importance has come to my attention. I must speak with you about it."

Link stared at her for a moment. His eyes slid over to Midna. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the Twili shrug at him. He glanced back into his house, down at himself, and back to Zelda. "Right now?" he asked.

"I could not wait a moment longer."

"Okay." He drawled out the first syllable. His eyes slid over to Midna with a raised eyebrow in silent question.

Without anymore prompting, Midna held up a hand. "I'm just the back-up friend."

Link nodded. "Right. Come in." He stepped aside to let the girls in. Zelda was as familiar with Link's apartment as she was her own. As she went immediately to her preferred spot on the couch, Link went into the small kitchen. Midna sat down beside her. "Can I get you anything? Coffee? Tea? Water?" He paused as he opened the fridge. "Nope. Never mind. That's pretty much all we have."

"Some tea wound be delightful. Thank you."

"I'm good," Midna called.

Link gave an affirmative hum. He pulled out the electric kettle she had given him that was more of a gift for herself than him. Link hardly ever drank tea or coffee, but Zelda drank tea often. And kept a healthy supply of her favorite kinds in Link's apartment.

The darkened hallway that led to the bedrooms caught her attention. A thought hit her that should have occurred to her well before this. "We aren't going to disturb your roommates?" she asked.

Link shook his head as he poured the water in and turned it on. "Nah. Kafei is gone this weekend, Fledge has the night shift, and it would take a war outside his window to wake up Fado now that he's asleep."

"That is wonderful to hear. I would hate to deprive them of their rest." A sharp pain caused her to hiss. She turned to her companion. "What was that for?" she whispered. She rubbed the spot on her arm where Midna had pinched her.

"Relax," Midna said. "You are way too nervous."

"I am not," she protested.

"Zelda, you are in full-on princess mode," Midna deadpanned. "You only do that when you are super nervous. Calm down and get on with it."

Zelda knew she was right. Straightening her back, Zelda looked back at Link. "Link, I have discovered that people have a misconception about the nature of our relationship."

There was a slight pause in his movements before he poured the water into the cup. "In what way?"

Opening her mouth to reply, Zelda snapped it shut as she realized that she didn't exactly know how to put it. "People call her Link's girl," Midna supplied. Well, Zelda supposed that was one blunt way of putting it.

Link's hand stilled from where he'd been stirring Zelda's tea. "And you don't like that?" His eyebrows furrowed over his eyes.

Pursing her lips, Zelda shot a glare at him. "Well, when a complete stranger calls me that, no, I do not." It was creepy. It was downright creepy for some random guy whom she had never seen before to know what she looked like.

Link looked down. "I guess that's my fault. In high school you used to complain about guys hitting on you. I made sure people knew you were mine to discourage that."

"What?" Midna asked after a beat of silence. Her flat incredulous tone relayed Zelda's feelings exactly.

Link walked over and set the mug in front of her. "Are guys hitting on you again?" he asked as he sat down across from her. Zelda smiled and lifted the tea to her lips and took a sip. Of course, it was how she liked it. Link was adorable when he was all protective of her. "Do you need me to buy you a ring? One you can flash in their faces to get them to back off? I was planning on waiting until after we graduated since your education was always important to you."

She almost spat out her drink. As it was, she almost choked on the liquid and had to cough. "I beg your pardon?" she asked when she had regained control.

It was like he didn't hear her. "Well, I wouldn't mind a long engagement. I'm used to waiting and having a long relationship anyway."

Zelda set down her teacup. "Link?" This was as close to rambling as he got. She didn't hear it often. Link, despite his inherit friendliness to all living beings, was normally a man of few words. He only rambled like this when he was tired. Which, considering she had woken him up in the middle of the night, was not that much of a stretch to imagine.

He still keep talking, either not hearing her or ignoring her prodding altogether. "But don't you think it's about time anyway? We have been dating for five years, after all."

"Wait, what?" She was glad she had set down her cup because it would have come crashing down at that pronouncement. Zelda had absolutely no idea what Link was talking about. They had been dating for five years? Her brain couldn't even wrap her thoughts around that.

Midna started to laugh. And it wasn't the type of laugh that was in simple happiness. This was a mocking, incredulous laugh. The Twili found the situation hilarious at Zelda's expense. "That's my cue to leave." She stood up from the couch and started toward the door.

"Midna, don't you dare leave me," Zelda said under her breath. There was no way that she wanted to deal with this on her own. She got to her feet and went after her friend. Zelda latched onto her arm to prevent her from leaving.

The other woman shrugged her hand off and looked behind her to Link. Zelda was afraid to look behind her. "Take care of her, Link. And Zelda, if you're not in your bed tomorrow morning, I'll know why." She gave Zelda a suggestive wink.

"Midna!"

The imp cackled as she saw herself out the door. Zelda looked at the closed door, afraid to turn around. She could feel Link's gaze on her back. For a moment, she contemplated following Midna out the door. But while she kept herself fit, she didn't know anyone who matched Link in sheer athletic prowess. She wouldn't get very far before he caught her.

No, she had no choice but to face this now.

Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes to brace herself. She turned on her heel and opened her eyes. Her heart clenched. Link looked confused and hurt and tired.

She had to fix this. She had to fix this now.

Remembering the envelope in her pocket, she reached behind her to pull it out. She handed it out to him. "This is for you. Some guy at Telma's gave it to me to give to you. I don't know who he was. He was the one that called me Link's girl today and prompted my coming over here. Even if it did take this long for me to work myself up enough to get here. But I promised I would deliver it today, so here I am. Even if it is technically tomorrow, isn't it?"

Now she was the one rambling.

She was a coward.

Lucky for her, Link was anything but.

He stepped forward and took the envelope from her hand. Without looking at it, he set it to the side. Link grasped her hands and began to lead her back to the couch.

She'd like to say he'd never held her hands like this before. His grip was gentle but firm, like he was aware that his strength could break her but nothing could tear him from her.

But it would be a lie.

Zelda sat down on the couch beside him, as he coaxed her down. Without words, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him. She had always fit snugly under his chin. The sound of his heart beating beneath her was one of the most soothing sounds she knew. He always knew what she needed without her saying anything. This was exactly what she needed to calm down.

She'd like to say he'd never hugged her like this before. His arms around her were the safe haven she had always felt. Like she was the most precious thing he had and there was nowhere else she should be.

But that wouldn't be the truth.

Link calmed her without words. She breathed easier in his arms. At last, he loosened his hold, and she leaned away from him. She didn't get far as his hands moved to cradle her cheeks. He gazed down at her.

She'd like to say that he'd never looked at her like that before. His eyes were tender and full of love. He looked at her like she was the answer to everything.

But it just wasn't right.

He always had. He had always done all those things. Only, Zelda had never recognized them for what they were.

Midna joked that Zelda must be blessed by Nayru, Goddess of Wisdom. She excelled academically and professionally. It was like she had a golden touch and could do no wrong in those areas. At the moment, she felt more cursed than anything else. Because she was an idiot. Midna was going to laugh about this for ages.

Zelda had been dating Link for five years and hadn't even known it.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

Link's hands dropped from her face as he shrugged. "You know me. I'm not good with words. I didn't think I had to."

"But you've never told me that—" She was about to say that he never told her he loved her, except that he had. Every phone conversation ended with a quick exchange of "love yous". He'd often thrown the words into casual conversation, when she did something for him, or gave him something, or any number of situations. She had taken them as jokes or as an exchange between close friends.

Zelda was feeling more like an idiot every second.

"When?" she asked instead. "When did it change for you?" Because there had to be a moment. They meet as freshman in high school, and five years ago was their junior year. For Zelda herself, she had fallen in love with him about a year after their friendship started. Something had to have happened to change his view of their friendship as well.

Link rubbed the back of his head and turned his gaze to the side. "I don't remember the exact date, but I do remember the moment."

"Tell me." She shifted closer to him to show that he had her full attention.

He sighed and dropped his hand into his lap. "It was the summer before junior year. We were at Lake Hylia with everyone." Zelda nodded, remembering the trip. She tried to figure out what moment he was talking about, because she couldn't recall any mind-blowing incident to change his mind. "I reached out my hand to help you up. When I was about to let go, you grasped my hand tighter. I looked at you, and you gave me that smile. And I just knew." He shrugged again and gave her a lopsided smile. "I guess…you had the chance to let go, and you didn't."

Zelda remembered that day. It was yet another attempt of hers to get Link to realize her feelings and make a move. In fact, she viewed that as probably her weakest attempt ever. Apparently, she had been more successful than she had thought. Trust Link to get the small meaningless moment rather than any big gesture. "But why haven't you ever, I don't know, kissed me or something?" Because Link had always been a physical guy. He showed his affection to everyone through touch. She should know. She'd experienced her fair share of back-breaking Link hugs. With how much he always touched her and his love of physical affection, if Link did love her as he proclaimed… Well, there was no way he hadn't at least thought about it.

Zelda knew she had. Many times.

And she was not like Link.

Link ducked his head. Pink flushed across his cheeks. "Freshman year, you told me the story of how your father first kissed your mother on their wedding day. You said you thought it was the most romantic thing in the world. And that you only wanted to kiss the man you were going to marry. Just like your mom."

Zelda wanted to go back in time and punch her past self. At fourteen, she had been an idiot. Sure, the idea had been romantic at the time. Before she realized that her parents' situation had been rather unique. Before she really, _really_ wanted to kiss Link. But then she realized something else. "You remember that?" She was sure she had told that story in an off-hand sort of way. To think that he remembered it well before they started "dating" was sweet.

Link nodded. "Though to say we haven't isn't entirely accurate." He clamped his jaw and turned bright red.

She gripped his arm in shock. Zelda couldn't believe what she'd heard. "What? Link, I think I would remember if you kissed me." Like it would be burned into her memory. She would have replayed it over and over in her head. She would have dreamt about it every night. She would have repeated the performance multiple times since.

His lips tilted upward in a sheepish half-smile. He gave a little awkward chuckle. "I knew I would have to tell you one day." Link ruffled the back of his head. "On your birthday, when you came of age, Midna held that big party for you."

Zelda nodded, pinching her brows together. "Yes. She insisted on getting me absolutely drunk just because she finally could. After that night, I made the decision never to drink like that again." She hadn't enjoyed herself, and the headache the next day was mind-numbing. Zelda wasn't opposed to a glass of wine at special occasions and whatnot but she never wanted to be that drunk again. She never wanted to lose her self-control like that again.

"Midna charged me with taking you home when it was clear you were far past being any kind of coherent. Since the party was at your place, she said to bring you—"

"—here," Zelda interjected. Of course, she remembered that. When she woke up in Link's bed the next morning, he had explained that much. "Yes, I know this already. You told me before." She failed to see how this related to their supposed kiss.

Link's eyes dropped to the ground. "But I left out the part where…" He bit his lip. "When I laid you in my bed, your eyes opened and you looked at me with just this smile." His face softened and a goofy smile lit up his expression. "Then, you said my name and reached up and kissed me." His expression turned contrite in a second. "I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to know you broke your promise to yourself to only kiss the man you were going to marry."

Zelda smiled and laid her hand on his chest. She was glad that she had woken him up in the middle of the night. Link would have never let anything like this slip if he hadn't been so tired. "No promise was broken." Link's eyes widened. She had to grin. He was back to being that man of few words. Link could say so much with only his expressions. It was so endearing. "Didn't you offer me a ring earlier?" He nodded. "In fact, I would like to request a repeat performance, if that would be agreeable to you. One that I will actually remember."

Link flushed. In a small movement, he nodded his head again. Zelda smiled and leaned forward again. Link's hands came up to her cheeks again as he met her halfway. Their lips met and moved across each other.

And Zelda no longer minded that everyone called her Link's girl.

* * *

"For the record, I carry around a picture of you wherever I go. And show it to pretty much everyone I meet. Which is probably why everyone knows what you look like."

"Oh, Link. You're adorable and I just love you."

"…I love you, too, Zelda."


End file.
